Being Human
by LaZella
Summary: Sequel to Fever. There are many things that Astral needs to learn about having human body. So do the people around him. A series of short stories about various topics. Topic suggestions accepted.
1. Getting used to it

So I decided to write a loose squeal to Fever. I feel like that there is so much I can do with what I set up so these will be little shorts about various topics. I'll even take suggestions about what to write next. Leave your suggestions in reviews.

…..

Astral looked at his new appearance. Being human was something that he imagined in passing but here he was in the flesh, literally. Yuma had made a great sacrifice for him offering half of his soul. But the process was not painless. Yuma had insisted that he was fine during the process but his screams of pain still haunted his memory. Right now Yuma was recovering in bed from both the soul extraction and the illness that lead up the decision. So Astral was left with some time to himself to get used to his body. It was weird to feel anything. The touch of skin, the rubbing of fabric, running his fingers through his hair, eating was his favorite. Upon his introduction to the Tsukumo family Grandma had made a grand feast to celebrate the occasion, though Astral had to be stopped several times from putting wasabi on his food, once he ate it straight he understood why. It had only been a few days but Astral already learned so much about being human, and understood why Yuma had lied about what exactly happened inside a bathroom.

"Astral….is Yuma doing alright?"

Astral heard Yukari's hesitant voice. Out of everyone in Yuma's family, she seemed to be the slowest at accepting his presence. He figured it was because she was unaware of his and Yuma's fate and had to be filled in. The reactions she had as she heard more and more, at times cursing herself for not noticing the times Yuma was in danger. She had also freaked out when she realized that Astral had been a ghost in their house. Ever since then she had kept her distance, only talking to him when absolutely necessary.

"He's still sleeping Akari. Though once Grandma makes good he'll wake up."

"Of course he would…" Akari closed the door as fast as she could. Astral sighed, he hoped she would accept him soon.

Akari couldn't help but look at the door of her brother and his….friend's room. How was she supposed to accept that this boy was Yuma's invisible friend that helped him duel and saved the world and was magically human? Mom and Dad were all smiles upon hugging him and declared that they were going to adopt him as their own while Grandma just went with it talking about how it was nice to have one more mouth to feed. Hearing him call them Mom, Dad, and Grandma. She didn't like it one bit. There was no way she could see this person as her brother. Storming back to her room she sat back down at her desk. There were still articles she had to write.

"How can he just waltz in and take a place here?"

"He is a part of this family Akari."

Akari didn't look at her father. "Why are you so instant on that?"

"I thought you would understand. He is Yuma's best friend and part of the destiny that he fulfilled."

"That's why I tried to forbid him from dueling! He's just a kid!" Akari protested. "And now you have Astral…who is supposed to have been this invisible friend…living under our roof. You think I would be okay with this?"

Kazuma sighed, "Can you please just give him a chance?"

"But it's his fault that Yuma's suffered so much!" Akari's patience was running out. "I'm never going to accept him! Ever!"

A glass breaking was heard from the kitchen followed by storming footsteps. Kazuma poked his head out to catch the tail end of someone running upstairs. "Oh boy…" Kazuma rubbed his forehead and went upstairs. He had a good feeling as to who it was that over heard them. Yuma and Astral's door was slightly ajar allowing him to hear the sobs coming from inside.

"Shhh….it's alright Astral."

"S-She….she said…."

"Just give her time."

"What…..what can I do?...She hates me…."

"We'll figure something out. Don't worry."

Kazuma was grateful for his son's caring heart as he went back down stairs into the kitchen where his wife was cleaning up the broken glass.

"I don't have to guess what happened do I?" She asked.

"I suppose not….what are we going to do? We've been out of their lives for so many years….we barely know our own kids." The sound of Kazuma's heart breaking was almost audible.

"We have to learn to be a family again," Mirai said sweeping up the last of the glass, "But Akari was always stubborn. I don't want to force her to accept Astral but if it goes on like this…."

"Oh don't be so down you two." Haru said as she entered the kitchen, "I know of the perfect way for those two to make up.

….

"Oh no….you did not just do this to me!"

Akari crumpled the note in her hand. Both of her parents and grandma had left the house and had asked her and Astral to take care of dinner preparations! She could of done it herself but the workload left to her needed two people. And there was no way she could ask Yuma because he was still bedridden. But Astral had been reluctant to leave his room lately, not that Akari minded but right now she did need some help.

"No….I can do this myself." She threw on an apron and got to work, chopping vegetables, mixing meat, and heating the oil for frying. It was a lot of prep work for one person to feed six in the time she had but she wasn't going to be beaten by this challenge. She was hurriedly trying to form croquette balls when the smell of something burning caught her nose.

"Crap!" She forgot about the cooking oil! The pan was way too hot and was starting to boil over! One drop of the grease made contact with the gas fire combusting the whole pan into flames. She had to put it out before the fire spread. Grabbing a dish cloth Akari tried to beat the fire out as much as she could to at least get to the burner to turn it off but the hot oil was splattering everywhere and the heat was immense.

_At this rate the fire is going to spread!_ Akari tried to hurry and think of a solution when someone ran past her grabbing the still burning pan tossing it into the skin and smothered it with a dish towel.

"Are…are you alright?" Astral asked out of breath.

Akari was in shock. "Do you know how dangerous that was?! What if you spilt what was in the pan!"

"I-I'm sorry!" Astral seemed rather timid now, "I read that water and smothering a fire would extinguish it. Was I wrong in my method?"

Akari had to resist the urge to smack herself in stupidity, of course Astral wouldn't know how to deal with a kitchen fire. Yuma said he wasn't able to touch anything until recently so everything he knew was second hand or was from reading. He wouldn't know that he wasn't supposed to touch a hot pan. _Oh crap…._

"You're hands."

"What?"

"You're hands….let me see them."

Astral blink but held up his hands palms up. Parts of them were an angry red from the hot metal and oil.

"Yep…you've burned them."

"Burned?"

"You burn your skin when you've come into contact with fire or hot metal. It's an injury and I need to treat it." Akari simplified her explanation seeing that Astral was still confused.

"Oh…I'll go get the medical kit…"

"No I will…don't touch anything. We don't want to risk infection. Run them under cold water until I get back." Akari went to the bath room to retrieve the first aid kit and took a moment to think. "Stupid….stupid stupid me…." Akari knocked her head against the mirror. Her stubbornness nearly caused the house to catch fire. She should have asked for help that way she would of kept a better eye on the oil. And now Astral went ahead and got himself burnt over her mistake. She had treated him rather coldly yet he still came to her aid. Especially with her conversation with her father the previous night that it was obvious that Astral had overheard. "I hope he can forgive me…." Akari collected herself and went back to the kitchen seeing Astral keeping his hands under water just like he was told.

"That should be good." Akari turned off the faucet and collected a clean towel. She carefully dried off his hands not to agitate the sensitive skin then rubbed the burn cream on the affected areas.

"That feels cold…and weird." Astral muttered.

"The cream is supposed to be like that….I'm surprised that you aren't screaming in pain."

"It does hurt but Yuma never cried at physical pain so I thought you weren't supposed too."

Akari let out a groan, "That Yuma…..he's teaching you bad habits."

"He was the only one who could see me for some time. I only knew what he cared to explain to me."

"Was it….lonely?" Akari found herself asking.

Astral seemed surprised at her question, "The feeling of emptiness….and sadness that I got when ever Yuma wasn't talking to me….yes it was lonely."

"Oh…I'm sorry."

"You have no need to apologize…that was in the past and this was my mistake…"

"No Astral…it's mine. I was being stupid. I was thinking more of myself. I didn't think of how Mom and Dad felt. I didn't think of how Yuma felt…and how you felt. I was so caught up in my own head that I didn't think how this could have been the greatest thing that has happened to you." Akari stared to wrap up the burns. "And for all those things I said….I'm sorry. Do you think you can give me a second chance?"

Astral smiled, "Yuma believes in second chances…so I will."

Akari breathed a sigh in relief, it was like a big weight was lifted off of her chest. Then she looked over the state of the kitchen, "There's no way that dinner will be ready on time."

"I can help. I've observed Grandma preparing food several times."

"There's a big difference between watching and actually doing it." Akari let out a smile. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad having another brother.


	2. Writing

"School?"

"That's right Astral. We're going to sign you up to school." Kazuma said.

"Is it necessary?"

"Well…..it would look suspicious if someone of your age wasn't going to school. Plus it would be good for you."

Astral mused over the idea. He did listen in sometimes in Yuma's lessons during school but never really paid attention. He had been a little laser focused on collecting Numbers at the time. He knew how to read but writing? He never wrote anything before. And there were the social graces that came with being in a public setting.

Yuma however seemed on board with the idea, "This is great Astral! We can go to school together!"

"I don't know Yuma….."

"Just stick with me and you'll be fine."

"That greatly concerns me."

"We'll help you catch up with the material so you won't be falling behind." Kazuma ruffled Astral's hair.

The next few days were intense as Astral studied as hard as he could. He had to prove he had enough knowledge to be placed in the same grade as Yuma. But what was tripping him up wasn't the material, it was writing it down.

"Oh boy….." Yuma looked over the paper Astral wrote, "No one's going to be able to read this."

Astral sighed looking over the kanji dictionary. Many of these characters were difficult to write and his hands shook every time he gripped a pencil. "You're handwriting leaves something to be desired."

"At least Ukyo-sensei can read it. I don't think he can read this."

"This is why I'm practicing." Astral grabbed another sheet of paper and began to write again, the same character again and again. He gripped the pencil tightly in an attempt to stabilize his strokes but his hand was trembling too much.

"Holding the pencil tighter won't help Astral…try to relax your grip." Yuma advise.

"I've tried that but I lose my grip every time."

Yuma pouted as he thought. "I've got it!" He grabbed Astral and dragged him out of the house.

"Y-Yuma! Where are you going?!"

"You need to relax! I've got an idea!"

Astral just sighed and let himself be dragged along.

…

Ukyo was quite surprised to see Yuma at his office, at the school building, on a day with no school, with an unfamiliar boy in tow. "Yuma…this is a surprise."

"Ukyo-sensei, we need a bit of a help." Yuma gripped the boy's arm a little tighter. "We're having a little trouble."

"We? Just who do you have with you?"

"Oh…This is Astral. My family had just adopted him and we are getting ready to enroll in him school but…" Yuma pulled out a paper out of nowhere causing Astral to panic, "He's having a hard time writing."

"Y-Yuma! When did you bring that?"

Ukyo looked the paper over. Defiantly he was having trouble writing and there were mix ups about using kanji and hiragana. "Well…..I can help with this." He pulled up another chair at his desk. "Have a seat Astral."

The boy did so as Ukyo pulled out a few worksheets, leftovers from his days teaching elementary school. "Just follow the instructions and I'll watch." Then he saw a big problem the moment Astral picked up the pencil, "You're holding the pencil wrong."

Astral blinked as Ukyo fiddled with his fingers. "You need to brace your pencil against your fingers. That would clean up your writing a bit."

"Okay…." Astral began to copy what was on the worksheet. _So far so good_, Ukyo thought to himself. Then Astral got to the free answer questions. "Stop….why did you use kanji there?"

"Aren't you supposed to? I thought that I'm supposed to do so."

"Nothing is wrong at mainly using hiragana. The comprehensive test that you're going to take won't count against you if you don't use kanji." Then it clicked for Ukyo, "You're worried that you won't pass the test if you don't use proper kanji."

Astral seemed to stiffen while Yuma put a concerned hand on his shoulder.

"You shouldn't worry about that. We look more for what you know rather than how you write." Ukyo handed a few worksheets, "But I do want you to practice your handwriting. It would be bad if they dock points if they misread what you wrote. These handwriting practices should do the trick."

"Thank you Sensei." Astral took the papers.

"And I'll see you in class soon." Ukyo told both boys.

"Sure thing. Thanks Sensei!" Yuma waved as the two boys left his office.

The next week, Ukyo smiled as he saw Astral entered his classroom wearing the second year uniform just like Yuma's.

"Class….we have a new student."


	3. Love Notes

Astral was curious about the various envelopes that appeared in his locker with heart shaped stickers on them. They were increasing in number since his first day at school now they were clogging his locker. He dumped the envelopes into his bag, he could read them later. Heaving the bag over his shoulder, he made his way to the school exit. Yuma was stuck in supplemental lessons so he was alone to go home.

"Astral-sempai…."

A quite voice caught his attention. Behind him was a girl wearing the pink first year uniform. She looked rather flushed and fidgeted quite a bit. "Astral-sempai….." She said again.

"Yes that's me. Do you need something?"

"Umm….ummm…..h-here!" She held up a pink envelope with several hand drawn hearts on it. "Please accept my feelings!"

Astral looked between her and the envelope before taking it. The minute the paper was gone from her hands she bolted and disappeared between the rows of shoe lockers. Astral stuck the envelope with the others and made his way home.

"Astral!" Tetsuo swung his arm around his shoulder, "I saw that."

"Tetsuo….what is this practice of giving of these envelopes?"

"You don't now?" Tetsuo gave a sly grin, "It means girls have a crush on you."

"A crush?" Astral raised an eyebrow at the unfamiliar phrase.

"It means they have romantic feelings for you. But they are a little too shy to upright say it. That's why they leave the notes for you."

"I see….should I reply to them?"

"How many you've got?"

Astral opened his bag, "These are just from today."

"No way!" Tetsuo couldn't believe the number of notes contained in the bag.

"There are more from earlier in the week."

"That's too many to respond to. Did they even leave their names?"

"I'm not sure….I feel like it is polite to respond to them all though."

"Good luck with that….you have a lot to go through."

….

"The heck is this?!"

Yuma was staring at the sight of Astral's desk. It was covered in various stationeries and envelopes.

"I'm responding to the notes I've been receiving for the past week."

"How many is that?" Yuma asked.

"Thirty five."

"And you're responding to all of them?!"

"Those who left their name. There are quite a few who didn't leave their information behind."

"You really don't have to do this…." Yuma said as he read one of the notes over.

"It's polite….and does this phrase mean?" Astral asked pointed to a line on the note he was looking at.

Yuma read it, turn read, and took the note out of Astral's hand. "Just say you politely decline."

"Decline what?"

"You really don't want to know…..how does she know about that any way?" Yuma muttered.

"I still don't understand…." Astral marked off another name on his list. He hoped he would be done in time for school the next day.

…..

"Astral did what?"

"Wrote response to all the love notes he's gotten in the past week." Yuma sighed taking another bite of his lunch. "He's currently tracking them down to deliver them."

"I never knew he was that punctual…." Kotori sipped her drink.

"I'm worried that this would cause more notes to come flying in….his locker was stuffed yesterday."

"It might….I've seen the third year girls looking at him." Kotori sighed.

"Maybe I should get Mom and Dad to explain love to Astral….I'm not the best guy in this department."

"No you're not." Shark called out from his spot. He was eating lunch with his fellow former Barian comrades.

"How come Astral's getting all the girls…."Alit whined, "I thought I was the most attractive guy at school."

"You're antics are a little odd." Gilag said.

"Is it safe for Astral to get that much attention?" Rio asked.

"Well….." Yuma looked over to where a gaggle of girls was heard. Poor Astral was blocked from joining everyone else due to the number of girls offering to share their lunches with him. "Depends on the quality of their cooking."

"How bad can it be?" Alit asked.

….

"That bad…."

They were in the nurse's office having brought in Astral who was now suffering from a stomach ache from sampling some questionable lunches.

"Even I wouldn't try those food combinations." Astral groaned over the toilet bowl.

"You could have said no." Yuma pointed out.

"But that would have been rude."

"It's perfectly fine to refuse…they would have backed off if you said you wanted to join your friends." Rio said.

"I didn't want to be rude."

"Don't make me set up an escort to protect you from women." Shark said.

"I'll figure out a way to turn them down…." Astral wiped his mouth.

"Nuh huh…..We are going to have that talk with Dad Astral. This can't go on." Yuma said rather firmly.

"Anyway…..we've got to head back to class. Get some rest Astral and we'll make sure no one tries to sneak in." Kotori said. They left after that.

After school that day Astral's locker needed repair due to the door being jammed from all the letters stuffed in it.


	4. Festivals

The prospect of a festival excited Astral. The only one he observed was the culture festival that Yuma's school held but this time he got to participate. Yuma had explained that this one was different from the school one and was to celebrate some sort of holiday but Yuma being Yuma, he forgot which one.

"To be honest I really don't care but I really do enjoy the food there." He admitted.

That made Astral's mouth water. He loved trying new food. Maybe would finally discover if pancakes had actually pans in them.

The day before the festival Astral had found Haru looking over colorful robes in the living room.

"What are you doing Grandma?" He asked.

"Picking yukatas for the whole family for the festival tomorrow night," She smiled as she unfolded one, "I want to make sure everyone looks their best." She held up a red one up to Astral and shook her head, "Not quite….." Haru looked over the yukatas, "We certainly bought a lot of red ones for Yuma, he never really branched out in is favorite colors."

"I really can't picture Yuma in any other color than red." Astral admitted.

"That boy sure has a limited wardrobe…..perhaps we should purchase a new yukata for you Astral."

"Th-that won't be necessary! I'll just borrow one."

"Nonsense…." Haru grabbed Astral's hand, "You are part of the family now and I insist that you have a yukata of your own." Haru dragged Astral off as he grabbed her purse and slipped on her sandals. "Now be a good grandson and escort your grandmother as she does her shopping."

Astral had a feeling that this might have been something he should have backed out of.

….

The festival music was loud and the crowd was even louder. The smells of food from various vendors and the smoke of the fireworks and sparklers were present as well. Astral had to admit, this was quite the chaotic atmosphere.

"I can't believe you survived shopping with grandma." Yuma said adjusting the sash of his yukata.

"I was unaware a simple act of shopping could take several hours just to seek one item." Astral smoothed the lining of his own. Haru had selected a light blue yukata with a starlight pattern. It had been found at the third shop they went to after Haru had a pleasant conversation with the owner that lasted an hour. A similar conversation was held with the previous two shop owners. In short…it was a very long and boring trip for Astral. Still, he was grateful for Haru for purchasing the yukata for him.

"So what do you want to do first? Food? Games? Wonder around?" Yuma asked.

"Food. Takoyaki?"

"Sure thing!" They found the stall and purchased several servings of the octopus dumpling that disappeared into their stomachs in a matter of minutes.

"What's that going on over there?" Astral pointed to another stall.

"Looks like a shooting gallery. Want to give it a shot?"

It took Astral a few tries to get the hang of the toy weapon but he and Yuma did eventually win a few boxes of pocky.

"I don't get why you didn't go for the bigger prizes." Yuma said munching on their spoils of war.

"Because they were too heavy to knock over with the force provided by the toy gun. It made more sense to go for the smaller targets as they were easier to knock over therefore we would not waste ammo."

"I still wanted to get that action figure…."

"Some other time Yuma."

"You like the festival so far?" Yuma was curious.

"It's interesting, defiantly a different atmosphere from the school festival. Here you can see all sorts of families going about enjoying the evening. There are so many colors, smells, sounds. It's amazing."

"Wait till you see the fire works! Those are my favorite part. And I know the perfect spot to watch them."

"Lead the way then."

The area by the creek was quite compared to the festival atmosphere. It was darker too but Yuma insisted that it made watching the fireworks easier.

"Any time now…." He whispered.

There was a whistle in the distance as something shot into the sky, then boom! Astral couldn't believe it! Reds, blues, golds, greens, all sorts of colors shot across the sky in patterns that flashed in dimmed. Shot after shot more and more of these lights danced across the sky.

"Amazing…."

"This is why I love festivals."

"I think it has become my favorite part too."


	5. Discovering Pot-Tarts

This was suggested by my friend Hedgi. I had a ton of fun writing this one.

…..

Yuma rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. It was a lazy Sunday morning, a perfect day to sleep in. He wanted to sleep more but the call of food had forced him out of bed. Stumbling into the kitchen, he looked for something to eat for breakfast. Grandma usually didn't cook breakfast on Sunday morning due to everyone's crazy sleep schedules. Akari was usually still sleeping due to working to the last minute meeting deadlines and his parents were either asleep or out for a walk. And Astral was like clockwork waking up not long after the sun came up so who knows what he was up to. Yuma yawned going through the cupboards unsure what to have until he came upon an unusual sight.

"Astral…..why are you having a staring contest with the toaster?"

Astral didn't seem to have heard him and continued to stare at the toaster until it spat it contents out. Astral seemed delighted as he extracted two Pop Tarts and added them to a growing stack on a plate.

"Astral….what are you doing?"

Astral heard him this time and turned around and gave him a look. It was that same look he had when he ate a rice ball for the first time. "Yuma! Why haven't shown me this delectable treat before? It's simply amazing!"

"You mean Pop Tarts? What about them?" Yuma wasn't quite sure if he should be amazed or worried.

"The flaky crust with this jam on the inside, so simple yet delicious. And cooking them in the toaster makes them even better!"

"O….kay….." Yuma looked over to the opened and empty boxes, all three of them. "How many have you had so far?"

"I've lost count but I am going to enjoy these while watching reruns of Esper Star Robin." Astral still rather giddy took his plate and went into the living room. Yuma could only shake his head, this was bad as the time that Astral figured out how to use the toaster and promptly cooked all the bread in the house. Sighing he went to find the shopping list. Pop Tarts would have to be added to the menu for a while.


	6. Nightmares

Sleep was an odd concept to Astral, even before he became human. He recalled those nights when he would watch Yuma sleep until he retreated to the Key out of boredom. Yuma had always explained that sleep was a way for the human body to recharge after the day. But upon his first night as human, enacting sleep was much more difficult than expected. Yuma would fall asleep in almost an instant but Astral felt like it was hours before his vision went dark and next thing he knew it was morning. He quickly discovered that if he didn't sleep enough he lacked the energy to perform basic activities the next day. Though the oddest part about sleep was what could during it, dreams.

Astral's first dream was odd. He recalled that he was at school only for his classmates to storm in doing a river dance with Ukyo-sensei playing the bagpipes. Upon waking from that one Astral woke Yuma up demanding answers. Once Yuma had stopped laughing he explained the concept to dreams to him. The next few nights were dreamless then he got another one of him dueling Shark only for everything to suddenly change to a hot spring setting. Yuma got another laugh from that one.

But then came tonight.

It was a lot like other nights, dinner with the family, working on homework, showering, brushing their teeth, and finally turning off the lights. Yuma went up the ladder to the attic to his hammock in the attic while Astral made himself comfortable in the bed in the room below. He laid on his side closing his eyes slowing his breath, tricks that he learned to improve his sleeping. He felt sleep wash over him as the night went on as another dream came.

….

_The crystal palace stretched on for some time as Astral walked along its halls. The red color was scaring him a bit. It was reminding him too much of Barian world. Rubbing his arms for warmth Astral kept going. Why was he here anyway? The hallway was coming to an end as Astral saw a throne and someone asleep….no…tied to it._

"_Yuma!" Astral ran forward and tried to pull at the cords holding his friend. "Yuma wake up!" Astral tried smacking his cheek next trying to rouse him. The boy only moaned a bit but didn't wake. No matter what Astral did the dark cords wouldn't break. He next looked around trying to find something sharp to use as knife. There were a few crystals jutting out of a pillar so Astral started yanking on those trying to extract them._

"_A-Astral…."_

"_Yuma…" Astral ran back to him, "Stay with me…."_

"_Astral…." Yuma's eyes were glazed over and dull, "I'm sorry…."_

"_Don't say anything….I'm getting you out of here."_

"_Astral….he won."_

"_He?"_

_Something dark forced Astral back and landed on his back hard. "Yuma!"_

_Yuma's body was giving off a dark aura as his hair grew longer and longer reaching the floor. The cords dissolved allowing Yuma to stand up. His eyes were now full of malice and one of them had turned blue. His face twisted into a smirk as red markings appeared on his skin. Astral felt his throat tighten in fear._

_**What's wrong Astral? Are you alright?**_

_That wasn't Yuma's voice, it was another's. "Don Thousand."_

_Yuma's body chuckled, __**Do you like with what I've done with the place? This is the new Barian World.**_

"_What have you done to Yuma?"_

_**I have done nothing, he was always me.**_

"_He's not….Yuma has always been Yuma. He is my brother!"_

_**He is not….he carried my life force and chaos.**_

"_No!" Astral got to his feet, "Give him back!"_

_**No…**__Don Thousand waved his hand sending Astral flying into the wall the crystal growing over his hands and feet holding him in place._

_**Just sleep.**_

_The crystal continued to grow covering more and more of Astral's body further and further restricting him. He struggled as hard as he could, desperately trying to break free. "Yuma….please…..fight back!"_

_**Yuma no longer exists….as do you.**_

_The crystals continued to grow covering his mouth preventing any further protests from Astral. As the crystal encroached on his vision, a single tear fell from his eye._

_Yuma…..Was the last thought he had as the crystal covered him completely._

….

Astral sat up with a start breathing heavily. Just what was that? Was that a dream? What about Yuma? Astral bolted out of his bed and quickly climbed up the ladder to the attic. Yuma was still asleep in his hammock. Everything seemed alright but…..Astral had to make sure.

"Yuma….Yuma wake up!"

"Mmmm….Astral?" Yuma rubbed his eyes, "Did you have another dream? What happened this time?"

"It….it was…..Don Thousand."

Yuma's attitude did a 180, "You had a nightmare?"

"A nightmare?"

"It's like a dream but instead of entertaining you it scares you. Things that you are afraid of come back because you can't stop thinking about them." Yuma explained.

"Is that normal?"

"Yeah….it happens now and then….this must have been your first one."

"How do I stop them? I don't want to see another one…."

Yuma let out a sigh, "You really can't Astral. You don't know when they will come. The best you can do is to think of better things and talk to others about it."

"Like we're doing right now?"

Yuma laughed, "Yes Astral…like we're doing now."

"I don't think I can go back to sleep now…." Astral admitted, "I'm….too scared…."

Yuma seemed to think for a while then sighed, "Come on….." Yuma took Astral's hand and led him back down to the bedroom. "We'll share the bed for tonight."

"Will this help?"

"When I was little and had nightmares…I used to go into Mom and Dad's room and they would let me sleep with them until I was ready to sleep on my own. But we're kind of big for that so….I'll be here for you."

"Thank you Yuma….."

Yuma grinned as he placed an extra pillow on the bed before slipping under the covers motioning Astral to do the same. It was a tight fit so Astral did his best to hold still not to knock Yuma off. "Good night Yuma."

"Good night nii-san." Yuma fell asleep again in an instant.

It took a while for Astral to feel calm again listening to Yuma's light snoring. _Just a dream…._Astral reminded himself_….Yuma's never going to go away again_. Astral closed his eyes and fell asleep once more.

…

I've been dying to write something based on the DonThousand!Yuma AUs so I'm really glad I got the chance too here.


	7. Valentine's Day

Today is my birthday so my present to you is DOUBLE UPDATE ON ALL SOTRIES! The following two chapters were based off prompts from Ariette5. Thanks for the ideas.

…..

Astral never really got the idea behind human holidays, especially this Valentine's Day. At school, Shark and Gilag were currently escorting him around the campus with large boxes collecting various packages and bags from all the girls that were approaching him. It wasn't even lunchtime and both boxes were full.

"Wow…..I guess we need to start sorting this." Yuma whistled.

"What's the point of this again?" Astral asked.

"It's a day to show affection towards people you care about. Traditionally the girls gives presents to boys and a month later on White Day, the boys give gifts to the girls in return." Rio explained.

"Then I suppose I should make a list." Astral said.

"After the incident with the lunches…let's eliminate was doesn't seem edible." Shark said dumping the boxes spreading the contents. Kotori immediately picked out a few boxes that were giving off an odd smell and tossed them in the trash.

"Truffles, bark, peppermints….you've got enough chocolate for a month." Yuma said.

"But it looks like only half of these are home made." Kotori observed.

"Does that really matter?" Astral asked.

"Kind of…" Rio admitted.

"Can I have some?" Alito asked.

"Did you already get some today?" Gilag asked.

"Not as many as Astral did. Plus I ate them all."

"Seriously? You had your arms full!" Yuma exclaimed.

"They were good!"

Astral just rolled his eyes and kept writing his list of the gift givers. It was already twice the number of girls when he wrote responses to the notes that were left in his locker. And he was supposed to give something back to all of them on White Day? Humans are weird.

…..

After school, Astral managed to divide up the chocolate between all of his friends and even then he still had a bag full to himself. Nibbling on a chocolate bar he searched for Yuma.

"You wanted to seem alone Kotori?"

Astral hung back at hearing Yuma's voice.

"Just come on…." Yuma choking was a good indicator that Kotori was dragging him somewhere. He saw them pass by as Kotori took him to the railing overlooking the coast.

Kotori took a deep breath and held out a package to Yuma, "Here…."

"Huh?"

"It's for you dummy!"

"Oh…." Seems like Yuma was still slow on the intent as he took the box and open it, "Dark chocolate! My favorite!" Then he looked confused, "Is this for Valentine's Day?"

"Yeah….."

"Why didn't you give it to me during school?"

"Because….." Kotori turned bright red, "Nothing…."

Astral had a feeling as to why, Cathy had given Yuma not only chocolate but a full five course meal for lunch that day.

Yuma smiled and took a bite, "Good as ever."

Kotori smiled back, "Don't skip out on White Day this year got it?"

"Yes ma'am!"

"Good….see you tomorrow." Kotori left for home after that.

Astral walked up to his brother when she was gone.

"What's that look on your face for?"

"Nothing…."


	8. White Day

"Alright…judgment day…."

"Yuma….we're just getting things for White Day."

"You insisted that you get something for all ONE HUNDRED girls that gave you chocolate! I only have to do Cathy and Kotori but they would rip me to shreds if I got the wrong thing for them!"

"I'm sure we'll figure out something…." Astral said.

"But we don't have that much money…especially for one hundred people." Yuma sighed.

"Let's just look around and see what we can find. We can get some ideas." Astral said. They two of them were at the mall a few days before the human holiday White Day and from what Astral understood, it was like a thank you day for the presents received exactly a month prior. Astral's problem that he had received one hundred presents so be felt like skipping any of the girls would have been rude. Yuma's problem that the two girls that gave him presents know him very well, and they had limited funds between the both of them.

"Jewelry is going to be too expensive….."Yuma muttered as he passed the shop window.

"You can get that for Cathy and Kotori….we can use the left over fund for mine."

"But what though…."

"Kotori does wear lots of hair ribbons….and I'm sure Cathy would be satisfied with anything cat related."

"I guess so…." Yuma muttered as they entered the shop. Passing the displays of overpriced pieces in the several thousand range, they found things more affordable.

"I guess this can work for Kotori." Yuma said holding up a butterfly hairclip.

"You just have to put it in her hair for her." Astral grinned.

"You've been watching too many rom-coms lately…." Yuma groaned.

"Gives me more experience in dealing with the opposite gender."

"How many times to I have to tell you it does not work like that in real life?"

"Nevermind…..why don't you get this for Cathy?" Astral held up a cat shaped clock.

"I'm pretty sure she already has one….I guess this can work." Yuma looked at a cat pendant.

"Looks like we're good then." They paid for the gifts and set out to tackle the harder task, finding something for one hundred girls when they ran into something familiar.

"Yuma…Astral-san…are you two out for a bit of shopping?" Aika Hanazoe, president of the flower arranging club, was standing in front of them.

"Yeah…trying to get stuff for White Day," Yuma answered her question, "What are you up too?"

"Just getting some supplies for the club. I hope your shopping trip is going well."

"Well….we found what Yuma needed…but we are a bit lost as to what I should do."

"And what is that?" She asked.

"One hundred girls gave me chocolates on Valentine's Day and I want to get something for all of them."

"That's a rather impressive challenge you have taken on. Though I think I might have a solution to your problem."

"What's that?"

"Just follow me to the flower shop…" She gave a sweet smile and led the way.

Astral's nose tickled a bit upon entering the shop. The smell of the various flower species was a bit overwhelming at first. Aika went to a display extracting one flower and showed it to him.

"This is a carnation, a simply yet beautiful flower that comes in a variety of colors, and not to expensive on top of that. It shouldn't be too expensive to get hundred white ones."

"You are a live saver Aika." Yuma grinned.

"Don't mention it. Just promise to stop by the club room more often okay?"

"I can keep that promise." Astral gave her a thankful smile.

….

White Day thankfully went off without a hitch. All the girls were happily surprised to receive a flower from Astral thankfully prevents all sorts of arguments. Kotori and Cathy were pleased with their presents as well sparing Yuma from their wrath. Astral still though the holiday was weird but sort of fun at the same time. Next year…he was going to prepare a head of time.


	9. An Old Enemy

Astral sat as his desk laying out all the Number Cards. "Hello everyone."

There was no change in the cards but Astral could feel them responding. It was rather unbelievable that these used to contain his memories and the truth behind the Astral-Barian conflict. Now that the war was over there was no reason for the Numbers to keep existing but they chose nonetheless to stay. Except one.

Astral looked to the spot where Number 96 Black Mist would have been. Ever since the war was over the card had vanished. At first Astral panicked that he might be loose until Vector of all people told him why.

"_He wasn't part of you. He was actually part of Don Thousand that got stuck in you after your first battle. Don Thousand reabsorbed him so when he went, so did Black Mist."_

Vector explanation did make sense and in hindsight, Astral was glad that was the truth. Knowing what Black Mist was made everything that he said false and brought great relief to him. Collecting the cards, Astral slipped them into his deck box and took off for a walk. Yuma was off with his friends so Astral took some time to enjoy the outdoor weather. It was a fine spring day too with a genital breeze. A faint hum from the Number Cards indicated that they enjoyed it as well.

Some grass rustling caught Astral's attention. He could of sworn that he saw something moving between the trees but after staring at the spot for a good while yielded no results and it wasn't really the best idea to leave the path to investigate. Shrugging, Astral turned to continue his walk when another sound caught his attention.

_**Astral…**_

He froze, that voice was familiar and it had been over a year since he last heard it. He didn't bother turning around to confirm who it was, he just took off running.

_**GET BACK HERE ASTRAL!**_

It couldn't be…..Black Mist is supposed to be dead. Astral followed through with a gut feeling to jump to the left spotting a black tentacle crashing into the spot where he used to be. This time Astral managed to pay a small glance behind him to see his pursuer. It was defiantly Black Mist but he was worse for wear. He no longer looked like a winged demon now once again mimicking Astral's former spectral form but it was clearly unstable as if he was melting. The look on his face was a mixture of anger and bloodlust. Like a predator spotting his prey.

_**Where doing you think you're going?**_ Black Mist chuckled as he sent another tentacle Astral's way missing him by inches. He was now breathing hard, he was not used to strenuous activity and now he was running for his life. Fumbling into his pocket, Astral pulled out his D-Gazer and dialed up Yuma.

"Yuma! I need help!"

_Astral? What's going on?_

"It's Black Mist! He's back!"

_Black Mist!? Astral where- _A tentacle smacked the device from his hand.

_**No help for you…**_

There was no chance at getting the device again, Astral dove into the trees in hopes that he could lose Black Mist or at least prevent the tentacles from reaching him. Taking shelter behind a tree, Astral tried to suppress his breathing trying not to make a sound. He strained his ears trying to listen to any clue to hint at Black Mist's location. There was only the wind rustling the grass and leaves.

_Where did he go?_ _Is he toying with me?_ Astral started to panic again. Quietly as he could, he reached down to his deck box. Maybe he could gather enough energy to summon a Number to fight the dark copy off.

_**Found you!**_

Something cold grabbed Astral's ankle yanking him downward and started dragging him off. Astral tried to grab onto anything, grass, roots, the occasional rock, anything to stop this. Black Mist's cackles got louder the more and more Astral tried to resist. Another tentacle grabbed Astral's other leg flipping him over allowing him to make eye contact with Black Mist.

Black Mist frowned as he looked Astral over. _**Strange…..I thought I killed you…yet here you are. A human on top of that as well.**_

Astral just glared at the dark spirit. He inched his hand close to his deck box trying not to attract attention. Black Mist looked weak so just one attack should get rid of him.

Another tentacle shot out grabbing Astral's arm twisting it painfully behind his back causing him to cry out in pain.

_**Oooooh…..looks like your new body isn't as durable as your old one….**_Black Mist grinned psychotically. _**This will be fun.**_

Astral could feel the tentacles wrap around him further binding his other arm and pin his legs together. The black substance felt colder than he remembered, especially when it passed over his skin. He shivered involuntary at their touch which seemed to please Black Mist.

_**What's wrong Astral? Can't call on others for help?**_ Black Mist raised Astral off the ground as he continued to restrain him. _**I finally got you alone and I'm going to enjoy every moment of it.**_ He purred as he drew a claw down Astral's cheek.

Astral tried not to show any fear. Surely Yuma would be able to track his still on D-Gazer. He felt the other Number rallying up wanting to be summoned. If he could only reach the cards.

"Astral! Astral where are you?!"

"Yuma! Be careful! Black Mist is-HUMPH!" A tentacle slid around Astral's mouth silencing his cries.

_**Shut up you.**_ Black Mist snarled. _**I'm not going to let him interfere.**_ _**Human or not I plan on killing you for real and taking your power as my own.**_ He turned his attention to the surrounding area trying to spot Yuma. _**Where is he?**_

"Right here!" Yuma appeared seemingly out of nowhere tackling the dark spirit to the ground. Astral couldn't believe it. Yuma was extremely brave and crazy for attacking a deadly enemy straight on.

_**Get off me you stupid boy!**_ Black Mist shoved Yuma off but it didn't deter him. Yuma just got up and tackled Black Mist again. "Let go of my brother!"

_**Brother? **_Black Mist was surprised, _**How sickening….it was bad enough that you two worked together but brothers!**_ He let out a laugh, _**That's just pathetic.**_ A tentacle knocked Yuma back into a tree and pinned him there. _**I'll just crush you right here in now!**_ The tendril began tightening around Yuma's body as Astral screamed from under his gag. Yuma on the other hand, laughed.

_**What's so funny?**_

Yuma stopped laughing and grinned, "You are really easy to trick."

_**What are you implying-GAH!**_ Something struck Black Mist from behind. Standing over the spirit, was Number 65 Djinn Buster.

"Got you!"

Black Mist turned around, _**YOU!**_

"Surprised to see me again?" Vector chuckled as he looked at the D-Pad on his arm, "Even after losing my powers these babies still have enough juice in them to deal some good damage. Now how about you let my friends go?"

_**You think I will just release them?**_ Black Mist tried to look intimidating but the attack was taking its toll. His form was melting and the bonds holding his two captives were loosening allowing Yuma to wiggle free and the gag slipped away from Astral's mouth.

"I think you will." Vector waved his hand as Djinn Buster swung its sword again cutting the tendrils holding Astral causing him to fall to the ground letting out a grunt.

"Are you okay nii-san?" Yuma ran over pulling the last of the restraints off of his brother.

"I-I'm alright….just a little shaken….how did you find me?"

"The Numbers told us! Djinn Buster suddenly appeared in my deck glowing so we used it to track you down." Yuma said looking over to where Vector was having his fun, "And Vector wanted a chance to get back at Black Mist for something so he volunteered to use the card."

"Did he put you up to distracting him?"

"Nope, totally my idea!" Yuma beamed.

"Of course it was…" Astral shook his head.

Due to Djinn Buster's repeated attacks, Black Mist was looking no better than a puddle of goo. "He's not staying dead isn't he..." Vector asked in annoyance.

_**I….cannot…..be killed…..**_Black Mist's voice seemed to bubble from the puddle. _**I'll…..get you…..ASTRAL!**_ The liquid shot forward like a steam of water straight for Astral but Yuma leapt in front of him his Key glistening as it projected a barrier stopping the attack. The goop plopped to the ground and slithered off fast like a snake in the grass.

"Awww….he ran off." Vector pouted.

"And good riddance for that!" Yuma shouted, "Thinks he can go after Astra like that…."

"I'm more worried about how he came back….and that he's still out there." Astral pointed out.

"Who cares…..I can take him." Vector said rather nonchalantly.

"Yuma….Vector….thank you…" It was hard for Astral to show gratitude towards the former Barian, considering what he had done in the past, but he managed it nonetheless.

"Don't mention it…..I needed to vent and he was the perfect target….mind if I keep the Number just in case I see him again?"

"Only for use against Black Mist." Astral warned.

"No promises!~" Vector sing-songed.

"Let it go Astral….how about we get you home and get you cleaned up before Mom sees you and freaks." Yuma proposed.

"That is a wise plan…..I hate to see Mom's wrath directed at anyone."


	10. A Family Sticks Together

It was a quite night at the Tsukumo household. All six members of the family were sleeping peacefully, windows were open to let the cool air in. But something else was coming in too. Up in the attic where Yuma slept, something slithered over the windowsill. A black ooze plopped into the room, it looked towards the boy sleeping in the hammock. It climbed up the wall to the supports of the hammock dripping down the rope. The ooze curled around Yuma's ankle barely rousing him from his slumber. The mass began to bubble and grow, eventually taking on a human shape.

_**Ah….Ah…..ahhh…..Finally…..**_Black Mist panted. _**Now…time to get to work…..**_

The tendril continued to work it's up Yuma's body reaching his chest grabbing the cord of the Emperor Key, yanking it off his chest. That was the action that woke the boy up.

"Mm…wha….YO-ACK!" A tendril shot forward wrapping around Yuma's neck.

_**Hush…..**_Black Mist put a finger over the boy's lips_**…This won't take long**_.

Yuma however, refused to stay quite. "ASTRAL!"

The tendril constricted cutting off air. _**Will you shut up?!**_

"Yuma?" Black Mist could hear someone coming. Looking behind him he saw Astral's head peak out from the opening in the floor. "YUMA!"

"Astral…..g-get….get Dad…." Yuma weezed.

_**I won't let you!**_ Black Mist shot tentacles towards Astral who ducked down out of sight. Growling, Black Mist gave chase dragging Yuma behind him. He had to prevent him from getting help.

The bedroom below was empty but the door was wide open as Black Mist gave chase. There was still no sign of Astral on the stairs but Black Mist spotted him in the living room.

"Dad! Mom! Wake up!"

_**Shut up already!**_ Black Mist made quick work of restraining Astral and silencing his cries_**. I don't want any other interruptions!**_

"Like me?!" Something hard and blunt struck Black Mist in the back of the head. The object in question was a frying pan wielded by a very pissed off Akari. "Drop my little brothers now!"

"You best do what she says…" Akari was joined by an equally angry Haru who was wielding the broom.

_**Am I supposed to be intimated by you two?**_ Black Mist got a face full of bristles in response.

"Get out of my home you foul beast!"

"Yuma! Where's your Key?!" Akari called out.

"I-In my room! He ripped it off!" Yuma managed to choke out despite his constricted airway.

"Akari go get it!" Kazuma had joined the fray with a golf club, "We'll hold him off!"

_**You think you can defeat me?!**_ Black Mist questioned the family but the sound of metal attracted his attention to the most dangerous one present, Mirai was holding a kitchen knife and spoke in a very calm and collected voice.

"Let go of my sons."

Black Mist was unsure why he felt fear looking at this woman but knew he was in trouble. Being confronted like this and one of the family members retrieving the item that could stop him, he had to get out quickly. Spotting a window, he found his escape. _**Say goodbye!**_ He shouted as he flew towards it.

"Oh no you don't!" Haru swung her broom into Black Mist's legs knocking him off balance for a bit.

_**You old hag!**_ Black Mist moved to attack the elderly woman but Kazuma jumped to his mother's aid smacking the dark spirit with the golf club. "Don't you dare attack my family!"

Black Mist grunted as he threw Yuma and Astral towards the corner behind him but still keeping a grip on them. He came this far and he was not going to get go of his prize. Astral took the chance to bite down on the tentacle over his mouth, hard.

_**OWWWW!**_ Black Mist screamed in pain. _**You little-**_ He was cut off when Mirai took advantage of the distraction and sliced one of the tendrils off with the kitchen knife. _**Now that's just excessive!**_

"You didn't let them go," Mirai said still unusually calm, "So I will make you!" She slashed again, this time across Black Mist's chest.

The pain from the attack caused Black Mist to drop the two boys. Astral immediately started dragging Yuma out of the situation but Black Mist was quick of cornering the two again.

_**I won't let you escape!**_ Black Mist knocked the other Tsukumo family members back and circled his tentacles around the two boys. Astral just stared defiantly at his darker twin, embracing his brother tightly. "I won't let you hurt Yuma….."

_**And you think you can stop me?**_

Astral let out a smirk, "No….but my sister can."

_**Sister?**_ A jungle yell caught Black Mist's attention. Akari had leapt from the stairs and onto his back.

_**Get off of me you wretch!**_

"Never!" Akari raised her hand, revealing the Emperor Key in her possession, and brought it down into Black Mist's eye.

_**AAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!**_Black Mist had manage to throw Akari off but the attack had left its mark. The Key still lodged in his head was glowing brightly melting his form. Once again, Black Mist was nothing more than a puddle.

"Well then….." Mirai retrieved a jar and swept the goop up and sealed it tight, "He won't be bothering us anymore."

"That was cool Akari-neechan!" Yuma cheered.

"I wanted to do that for a long time." Akari dusted herself off picking up the key and returned it to her little brother, "Glad you two are okay."

"This has….certainly been an eventful night…" Kazuma said slumping into the couch.

"I think I'll prepare all of us some warm milk…that should calm our nerves down." Haru said as she fixed the knocked over furniture.

"That does sound rather nice…." Astral admitted.

The grandma smile as she prepared the drinks for the whole family as they discussed what to do with Black Mist's remains. It was eventually decided that they would be handed over to Eliphas in the morning, he would be the best person to handle the dark Number. Once the milk was had, the events of the evening had caught up to the family leaving no one with the energy to return to their rooms. So the family of six spent the night together in the living room. No force ever in the future was going to separate them again.

….

I really loved writing this chapter since I was able to give moment to each member of the Tsukumo family, Black Mist sure learned the hard way.


	11. Swimming

Gym was not one of Astral's favorite classes. His lean body was not built for physical activities and he tired very easily. That didn't stop the teachers from pushing him to the point of exhaustion. At least they went easy on him during swimming days. Astral enjoyed those days as he and his fellow students were left to own deceives, the teachers were only there to act as lifeguards. Floating in the water was nice, it reminded him of feeling he got when he flew. Though he didn't understood why the girls blushed when they saw him in his swim suit.

Yuma surfaced next to Astral, "Almost!"

"Five feet from your goal….still you are getting better at holding your breath."

"By the end of the year I can make the entire length of the pool in one breath!"

"I'm sure you can…" Astral chuckled as Yuma dove underwater again. He chose to float on his back kicking gently. Swimming was rather easy to learn once you learn to not breathe the water in. It was a rather relaxing activity that Astral enjoyed quite often.

"Enjoying the water Astral?" Kotori asked him sitting on the pool edge.

"It is a pleasant temperature, do you plan on swimming today?"

"Not really….it's too much of a testosterone pool right now…." She sighed looking over to where Gilag and Alit were having a cannon ball contest. "I would like to leave school today injury free."

"They do seem rather rambunctious today…" Astral stood up, "Perhaps this has something to do with that bet they made earlier today."

"Boys will be boys….." Kotori shook her head, "So, has the swim team been bothering you about joining them again today?"

"Not yet...though I wonder why they keep trying to recruit me….clearly I am not the fastest swimmer in the school."

"I think it's more of the fan service factor that actually athleticism…." Kotori sweat dropped.

"What do you mean by that?" Astral's question was answered when a high pitched girl's squeal entered the pool.

"There he is!" Several female members of the swim team walked, no running is allowed in the pool area after all, to the pool edge. "Have you made your decision about joining our team yet?"

"I do believe I explained that I am not the best fit for swimming."

"That doesn't matter….we can help train you."

"But why me exactly?"

All the girls turned various shades of red and mumbled incoherent words.

"I blame that one swimming anime…..Best make your escape now Astral while they're distracted." Kotori said.

Astral didn't question why but sunk under the water and pushed off the wall for momentum. He glided through the water weaving around other swimmers until he surfaced on the other side of the pool.

"Nice maneuvering there." Tetsuo complimented.

"Want to join us? We're playing Sharks and Minnows." Tokonosuke said, "Shark is the shark."

The boy in question just let out a groan at the obvious joke.

"Sounds interesting…how do you play?"

"You try to swim from one end of the pool to the other underwater. The shark tries to tag you when you come up for air. If you're tagged then you join the shark in trying to tag others." Takashi explained.

"Sounds simple enough…" Astral took his place with the other participants that the side of the pool.

The game started as all the swimmers dove under and swam. Shark was quick on catching those who had to come up for air. Within two round half of the players were tagged and were now tagging. It was also by this point Gilag and Alit had joined dragging Mizeal and Durbe to play as well. Rio had joined as well but join her brother's team.

"Where did Astral go?" Alit looked around having been tagged on his first round.

"There he is." Shark pointed to where he surfaced at the wall.

"This is the tenth round! How can he stay under water for that long?" Tokonosuke complained.

"You just have to stay calm." Astral commented back. It was rather easy for him to bypass all the players since he would dive to the pool floor to swim under the players rather than weave around them.

"We'll get him this time!" Gilag declared.

Astral just smirked and dove under again. He could tell that everyone was ready for him to come up but they won't succeed. He was going to win this.

"Can we just end this game al-WAH!" Shark got pulled under.

"Ryoga?" Rio was close to panicking.

Astral was confused as seeing the commotion then he saw why, Yuma was in a pranking mood.

"Gah!" Shark resurfaced, "I'LL GET YOU YUMA!" He dove under again splashing Rio.

"Hey!" She tried to splash back but got Takashi instead who in turn tried to retaliate, only to hit Kotori and Cathy who were sitting on the pool edge.

Cathy whipped her glasses in a cool rage, "That's it…this means war!"

The game forgotten, the pool got turned into a giant splash war until the teacher blew her whistle and signaled everyone to get out of the pool and change back into their uniforms.

"That could have been dangerous." Astral scolded Yuma as they headed back to the locker rooms.

"I know but it was fun wasn't it?"

"I suppose it was.

…

Hey readers…

FAN ART CONTEST!

I'm holding a fan art contest for all of the fics I've written in part that I am preparing to post my stories on Archive of Our Own which allows the inserting of art in the story. All you have to do is to draw a picture inspired by or based off any of my fics. And there will be a prize for each fic.

1st place for each story: Art used in Archive of Our Own posting, one shot request, art request.

2nd place for each story: Art used in Archive of Our Own posting, one shot request.

3rd place for each story: Art used in Archive or Our Own posting

All artwork will be credited to the original artists. Please keep all requests SFW and please no yaoi parings.

The due date is May 31st so just PM a link to your art to submit. If you are having a hard time submitting your work let me know.


	12. Mother's Day

Happy Mother's day everyone! I hope you have done something special for your mother or mother figure in your life. And so I have done a special chapter for today.

…..

If you were to ask Mirai Tsukumo what kind of mother she was, she would have been lost for words. To be honest, she hadn't felt like a good mother for seven years. For seven years she and her husband were trapped in another world, unable to even message their children. Kazuma told her many times that it was for the better, their actions would help secure a better future for their children. But during that time she greatly missed them.

She recalled all the times Akari would tell her stories from school, reading every single paper and magazine she could get her hands on, making plans to become a reporter. Every time she and Kazuma would return from a trip, Akari would be one of the first to welcome them back before reporting every single thing wrong that Yuma had done while they were gone.

She recalled all the times Yuma came home crying because he lost a duel, the excitement he had whenever he got cards as a present, the pouty face he would make when they told him he couldn't come with them on their trips. She recalled how his eyes lit up when Kazuma gave Yuma the Emperor Key but her joy was dampened because they both knew that it was the first step that their son was going to take on his tough journey.

She recalled the time she first saw Astral. She had just managed to get to Astral world after Kazuma had become trapped there because of Dr. Faker where she was greeted by Ena who led her to where she was hiding Kazuma. He told her about how Yuma was able to survive his premature birth and showed her the being responsible. Her art ached to see the young spirit trapped in the crystal to 'repair' damage caused by his battle with Don Thousand. Kazuma and herself swore that they were going to make sure Astral would have a better life than being a weapon. Ena was willing to help them out in their plan even taking advantage her likeness to Mirai, thought he blue hair dye took days to wash out. Once Astral was sent to Yuma, they had to wait.

But it was a long wait, Eliphas had locked them away in the wastelands for what they had done with no way to check on Earth. They managed to break out but it was a long travel to get back to the main towers. It was a long and exhausting journey but they were rewarded with a wonderful sight when they made it back, Yuma and Astral flying across the sky. Mirai felt tears come to her eyes seeing them so free and knowing soon, they could go back home.

So now here she was back in her family's life. Akari was well into her career as a reporter, Yuma is getting through middle school, and now they have Astral with them as well. Was she a good mother? Mirai will say she would be a interesting mother considering what she had to do for her children's future. Though she missed those seven years that she couldn't be there for them. All she could do now is looked at the photos her mother-in-law had taken like she was doing now, since three o'clock this morning. The sun was coming up now meaning that the day's events should start soon but maybe there was time to take a nap before then.

"Keep it down Yuma…."

"It's not my fault that pans make so much noise!"

"Are you sure we're doing the recipe right?"

"I'm sure we are Astral…why do you ask?"

"Because I don't believe that it's supposed to be that brown."

Mirai's mother senses were tingling, clearly her kids were up to something. Putting down the photo album, she made her way to the kitchen.

"What's going on in here?"

Her three children froze in place, Akari trying to flip a pancake, Yuma with a pan in his hand, and Astral trying to get dishes out of the cupboard.

"Mom…..you're up…." Akari sounded sheepish, "Yuma you were making too much noise!"

"No I wasn't!" Yuma protested his innocence.

"I guess this mean that this won't be a surprise anymore…." Astral sighed.

"What's a surprise?" Mirai asked them.

"Mom…don't you know what today is? It's Mother's Day."

Mirai gasped and looked at the calendar, she had completely forgotten about it. She couldn't recall the last time she spent Mother's Day with her kids.

"We wanted to make you a breakfast in bed…." Yuma admitted, "It was Astral's idea."

"It was?" She looked to her adoptive son.

"I saw it on TV…" Astral was blushing a bit, "When I asked Akari-neechan and Yuma if they had done that for you…they couldn't remember ever doing it."

Tears were welling up in Mirai's eyes, part of her said that she didn't deserve this. She had been out of their lives for seven years, they had every right to resent her…yet here they are, wanting to make this day special.

"Mom are you okay?" Akari noticed her tears.

"Sorry…." She wiped her tears, "It's just…" Mirai couldn't finish her sentence as sobs over took her throat.

Yuma threw his arms around her, "It's okay Mom…"

Akari joined in on the hug, "You deserve this….after everything you've done for us."

"Mom…." Astral took her hand, "I wouldn't be here without you….so just enjoy this day just for you."

Mirai wiped her tears, "Thank you….thank you all of you…."

If you were ask Mirai what kind of mother she way, she would say that she was the luckiest mother in the world.

…..

Don't forget about the fan art contest I'm having. Details are on my profile.


	13. Father's Day

A belated Father's Day chapter. I really meant to have this up Sunday but a lot of real life stuff happened and I will admit I do have Creator's ADHD as I keep jumping from idea to idea. But I did finish it so I hope you enjoy.

…

Kazuma sipped his coffee and read the morning paper. It was a calm morning, he and his wife as returned from an expedition the day before to the delight of their children, both for their return and the handing out of souvenirs. Akari got a copy of historical records for her work if she ever needed to do some research. Yuma got a pack of new cards and a new statue to put up in the attic that doubled as his room. Astral was the hardest to find something for but they eventually chose a new pair of earrings for him. His mother was just happy to see that he returned home safely once again, that's all she needed.

"Good morning Dad!"

Two pairs of arms wrapped around Kazuma's neck cause him to let out a jovial laugh, "Good morning you two." He gave his two sons a big smile.

"Hey Dad….you promised." Yuma gave a devilish grin.

"Promised what?" He decided to play dumb for a bit.

"Today is Father's Day, you promised that you would duel both of us today." Astral said.

"Oh yeah…..are you two ready?"

"You bet!" Yuma bounced on his heels, "We've been working on our strategy for a whole week."

"So I guess that means you are not going easy on me." Kazuma said putting the paper down.

"Nope." The two boys said in chorus.

"Then what are we waiting for?"

Both boys scampered outside and readied their D-Pads in the backyard ready for him. Kazuma couldn't help but smile, it had been a long time since he dueled Yuma and he never dueled Astral before now he was facing them together. Yuma had his old deck but had since made many changes to it while Astral always changed cards out so it was very hard to tell what he had planned. But he had some surprises for them too. Unknown to them one of Byron's sons, Michael to be specific, had come over several times to listen to his stories about his adventure. In return, Michael had helped him construct a new deck based on Ooparts. He was going to have fun with this.

…..

"So how many turns did it take for Yuma and Astral to beat you?" Dr. Faker asked.

"Five…..Astral said it would of taken three had it not been for my combo." Kazuma let out a nervous chuckle, "I swear, those two were communicating telepathically the whole time coming up with their plan."

"Maybe next time you should forbid that." Tron suggested.

"Naaa…I'm not a sore loser." Kazuma looked to the screens around the lab, "Seems everything looks peaceful."

"It sure does," Dr. Faker had a smile on his face, "I was able to enjoy this day with my sons because of it. Though I still don't think I deserve it."

"I think we all feel that way….we haven't been the best fathers ever." Tron said with a frown on his face. "You and I used our children as weapons in our plans."

"And even though it all worked out in the end, I still abandoned my children for seven years." Kazuma sighed.

The three men stood in silence for some time.

"Do you remember when your children were born?" Kazuma eventually asked.

"I do…..I was a nervous wreck when Kaito was born." Dr. Faker eventually admitted.

"Chistopher and Thomas were running around in circles waiting for Michael." Tron chuckled, "What about you Kazuma?"

"Mirai claims that I fainted when Akari was born…..then when Yuma was born…." He trailed off for a bit, "We nearly lost him if it wasn't for Astral."

"That story still surprises me every time….though it does explain a lot of things." Dr. Faker admitted.

"So what is Astral doing right now?" Tron asked.

"He's visiting Astral World right now, said he had something to do…." Kazuma said.

…..

"Astral….this is a surprise." Eliphas said spotting Astral's spiritual form.

"I hope I'm not disturbing you."

"You are not….did you need something?"

"Well…..on Earth today is a holiday called Father's Day that is for honoring fathers in people's lives." Astral said rather quietly.

Eliphas remained quite waiting to see where Astral was going with this.

"So….I just wanted to say…..thank you."

Eliphas blinked, "What for?"

"You created me…so in a way…you are my father." Astral gave him a smile, "So without you….I wouldn't be here today. So I wanted to say thank you for giving me life."

Eliphas stood speechless for some time, emotions swelling up inside him. "Astral…." He was cut off when the spirit threw his arms around him. He froze for some time before he returned the hug, "Thank you Astral…."


End file.
